Liverpool has submitted a bid of €100 million (£84 million, $113.7 million) for Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Florian Wirtz, as has come to light.
It was disclosed last week that Wirtz had turned down interest from Bayern Munich in favor of a transfer to Liverpool, having been persuaded by Reds manager Arne Slot.
However, Leverkusen is not inclined to facilitate the process for any of Wirtz’s potential buyers.
The Bundesliga club, currently managed by former Manchester United coach Erik ten Hag, is believed to be asking for a sum of €150 million (£126.1 million, $170.8 million).
Nevertheless, Fabrizio Romano has indicated that Liverpool’s initial offer does not meet this valuation.
Discussions between the two clubs are set to proceed, with both parties eager to reach a swift resolution and prevent a protracted negotiation.
It has been recently proposed that Liverpool might consider sending players to Leverkusen as part of an effort to reduce the overall expenditure.
The specific players that could be available remain uncertain, but the Reds are anticipated to investigate several possibilities.
Leverkusen’s unwavering position regarding their valuation has already been too demanding for Manchester City, who opted to withdraw from the pursuit of Wirtz earlier this month in favor of more affordable alternatives such as Morgan Gibbs-White from Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Liverpool will be optimistic that Wirtz’s evident eagerness to transfer to Anfield will be advantageous for them.
Slot has engaged in discussions with the Germany international concerning his aspirations on both personal and tactical fronts, persuading Wirtz that he should aim to move to Merseyside this summer.
Should an agreement be finalized, Wirtz would become the second player from Leverkusen to join Liverpool this summer, following right-back Jeremie Frimpong, who has been selected as the replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold, who is bound for Real Madrid.